Now Patrick Kane did have one of the sickest shootout goals you will ever see but he was not our Fantasy POTN. Who did that award go to? Let’s find out…..
FANTASY POTN:
Tim Thomas, G, Boston Bruins — Congratulations Mr. Thomas. After getting pulled in a start against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Thomas rebounded in a big way stopping 47 of 49 shots against the Ottawa Senators. The 5-2 win in Ottawa was even more impressive considering that Boston was without All-Star defenseman Zdeno Chara. On a night where there was only three games, Thomas really stole the spotlight. After all, who else were we going to put here? Jonas Hiller? Yes, somehow I did not think so.
SCHEDULE TIME:
Thursday, December 15, 2011 |
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| Teams | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas | at | NY Islanders | 7:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| Vancouver | at | Carolina | 7:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| Los Angeles | at | Columbus | 7:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| Philadelphia | at | Montreal | 7:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| Calgary | at | Tampa Bay | 7:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| NY Rangers | at | St. Louis | 8:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| Detroit | at | Nashville | 8:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| Washington | at | Winnipeg | 8:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| Edmonton | at | Phoenix | 9:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| Colorado | at | San Jose | 10:30 PM | Gameday | ||
It is a fairly busy schedule tonight with ten games on the docket. With that, we bring you the Pick Six by Ian Gooding…..
PICK SIX………..
Erik Cole, RW, MON – start
I don’t know what kind of direction the Habs are taking right now with their collection of second-line forwards. So you’ll have to excuse me if I didn’t get overly excited over the Cole signing earlier this summer. However, Cole has goals in three consecutive games and will be counted on even more with the recent injury to Brian Gionta. Don’t be surprised if he reaches 25 goals and 50 points again.
Nikita Nikitin, D, CBJ – add/start
No one in fantasy leagues likely cared when Nikitin was shipped from the Blues to the Blue Jackets for Kris Russell earlier this season. But to the surprise of many, Nikitin has supplied exactly what the struggling Jackets needed at the time. All he has done since the trade is score 10 points in 15 games, along with some first-unit power play time. Although he didn’t score a point on Tuesday against Vancouver, he racked up 25 minutes of icetime – a strong indicator of where he stands in the Columbus system.
Wayne Simmonds, RW, PHI – add/start
Who knew the player that could benefit most from Claude Giroux’s injury, incurred from an accidental collision with Simmonds, could be Simmonds himself. The power forward has goals in three consecutive games with five points in his last three games. There’s no way Simmonds will score at a Giroux-like pace, but Simmonds could provide an added element that Giroux doesn’t: penalty minutes.
Antti Miettinen, RW, WPG – watch
Miettinen appeared to be a better fit with the team that originally signed him, the Lightning, as he looked to fill in for the injured Martin St. Louis. As it stands, Mittens is a low second-line, high third-line option who is best suited for deeper leagues. Still, the Jets have an offense that is surprisingly in the top half of the league, which makes the former Star/Wild worth watching.
Steve Mason, G, CBJ – watch
In my last column, I hinted that Mason wouldn’t be such a strong play after his month-long sabbatical. But 30 saves and a shootout win later, he looks like the rising star who won the Calder Trophy in 2008-09. Granted, it’s only one start, so I’m not jumping back on the Mason bandwagon. Mason could start Thursday against a struggling Kings team, but there has been no definitive word as of the time of this writing. If his hot play extends beyond one game, however, he won’t last long on the waiver wire.
Teddy Purcell, RW, TB – bench
Purcell was a solid breakout forward last season with 51 points. However, he has only five goals this season, along with no points and a (-4) in last five games. Maybe he’s the guy who benefits from the Martin St. Louis injury. But this year’s numbers suggest that Purcell is hardly a candidate for fantasy rosters that aren’t anything but deep.
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KEEP AN EYE ON:
St. Louis Vs. The Rangers — This one has all the makings of being a goalie’s delight considering how stingy Ken Hitchcock likes to play defense and the Rangers’ propensity for not giving up goals. With both teams only giving up 62 and 61 goals respectively (right about 2 goals per game), if you are expecting a ton of offense, you are likely barking up the wrong tree. Henrik Lundqvist will start despite a bruised clavicle and Brian Elliott appears likely to get the nod for the Blues. If you want to keep an eye on someone here offensively, how about the GAS line from New York? That may be your best bet.
LA Story? — Who will step up to pick up the scoring slack for LA? Our only real choice right now is Anze Kopitar. However, Dustin Penner may actually have a shot at recapturing some magic from his glory days. Either way, this team cannot score and it almost does not matter who is the coach right now. Pucks will have to start going in the net for this team to gather any confidence. Right now, all eyes are on a .500 team that should be near or at the top of the Pacific Division.
Good luck out there fantasy hockey fans and we will keep you updated and informed tonight. Thanks again.
